Rancho Gordo to open a Ferry Building shop

Steve Sando has been hawking his heirloom beans outside the Ferry Building at the Saturday market for roughly eight years now, but he’s moving indoors this summer, taking over the current Scharffen Berger stall (it’s still open for now).

For Sando, it’ll be an opportunity to expand his offerings beyond the California-grown mandate for the market, since he’s also been working closely with farmers in Mexico and Honduras. For example, his banana vinegar

“We’re doing so many interesting things in Mexico,” Sando says, noting that 80 percent of his production is in California and his real focus is food indigenous to the New World, saving heirloom beans on the verge of extinction.

In addition to 25+ types of beans, Rancho Gordo will also sell its other indigenous New World products like heirloom corn (and tortillas), grains, herbs, chiles, stoneground cacao and even some prepared foods to snack on. Rancho Gordo is expected to open this summer.